Dena Demman's Staging Area

The course is well described on the website. It’s a very slight, barely noticeable uphill on the Bosque Trail, then it turns on the Paseo Trail which is welcome rolling hills at that point. Then the turn around, rolling hills back to the Bosque, past Tingley Park and back to the finish line. It’s an out and back. You do have to deal with half marathoners until they get to their turn around but once they turn around it’s pretty open. Overall it’s a good course. Finish line left a lot to be desired! I finished just after 5 hours and was offered warm water, a slice of bread and an apple. That was probably the biggest ‘con’ of the race.

Last year the race was a bit short and didn’t count for 50 staters, BQ’s or Marathon Maniacs. They redeemed themselves this year. My Garmin read 26.38 at the end of this year’s marathon. I love the Wizard of Oz theme even though I don’t prefer to dress up I loved seeing the costumes along the course. Very nice medal, ok t-shirt, post race food was not great, bagels, cream cheese, pretzels–but they did have chocolate milk, so that was a win.
The volunteers were great, aide stations were well stocked with Gatorade, water, Gu, some had fruit, cookies, pretzels. Nice Job Garmin!!

Everything was pretty easy logistics wise for this race. We stayed at the Hampton which was just a few blocks to walk to the start/finish and even the expo. I didn’t need to use a porta potty because I walked straight from my hotel to the start just 15 minutes prior to the start! The course was beautiful with fall colors all around. The volunteers were amazing! They really cheered for us, even mid-back packers!! This was my 43rd marathon and one of the best run so far. They really kept the entertainment coming with lots of aide stations and even the run through the Drake University Track, my fastest mile! I definitely recommend this race for 50 staters!!!

The scenery was beautiful from the beach to the lake and the historic houses in between. The volunteers were amazing! The course just had a few little hills but wasn’t anything too difficult. Finish line was good, especially the Nothing Bundt Cake samples!!! The t-shirt is nice but not the long sleeve tech shirt I was expecting.

I really enjoyed this race. Small expo with just necessary stuff. There were only 2 negatives: 1) the cups! They were hard plastic and I had to walk through every water station in order to drink and actually get some hydration in my mouth. Aid stations were good though but NO GELS! and 2) they post the gun time instead of chip time. If you don’t care about that sort of thing I’m sure it’s not a problem but I just do. I moseyed up to the start line then started my watch and started running. Oh well.
I loved the long sleeve shirts and the medal. Logistics were simple! I stayed at a hotel by the airport so Ubered to the shuttle and got there in plenty of time. Stayed warm inside the High School and checked my bag 6 minutes before the start!
Also, there is various terrain and I wasn’t quite prepared for the 7 miles of gravel/rocky terrain but I was rewarded when I saw a bear by the side of the road! The only time I’ve ever stopped to take a picture. There was some single track packed dirt which felt good on the feet and some pavement. It ended on the grass. I enjoyed all the Alaskan wilderness and greenery and water–but then I live in the desert 🙂 I definitely recommend it! Especially for us 50 staters! It was state #29 for me!

I would highly recommend this race, especially for those going for the 50 states. The course was so fun, seeing all the historical sights. But it was hilly. I had hamstring issues so I struggled pretty much throughout the race and I tried not to let that influence how I felt about the race itself because the volunteers were so cheerful and had so much energy, as did the spectators. It was like I had my own cheering squad for 26.2 miles! Since I had to run slower due to injury I was able to take more of it in. I stayed at the Hampton and was able to walk to the expo and the start line. Although I don’t recommend walking to the start line, I had 6,000 steps before I even started the race!

I was concerned as I had read some negative reviews but it was a fun race. I loved running through the fire station with high 5’s from the firemen! The medal is pretty cool with a keychain that comes off.
Aide stations were all well stocked with Cliff gels 2x. Running through the Bronco’s stadium twice was cool too! Plenty of porta potties at the start and along the way.
We stayed at the Mariott and they shuttled us over to the start. All the logistics went very smoothly–this is my 27th marathon so I know the importance of logistics on race morning!
Lines were too long at the finish but apparently there was good food. I’m running the 50 states and was glad I chose Colfax for my Colorado Marathon!

No one said it would be easy. And they were correct! Train on hills and you’ll be fine. I really enjoyed this race. I can’t remember my exact time but i did get first in my age group. It’s definitely not a good one to try to time qualify for anything. So worth it though! Everything about it was just fun and beautiful. Small town atmosphere. The expo was tiny but there was a nice Farmer’s Market with entertainment and lots of things to look at just across the street. Plenty of amazing places to eat and beautiful bed and breakfast. i stayed at the White Horse Inn and it was amazing in every way!
One of my fav race shirts–maybe because it’s purple? And it fits? Nice medal, hug from the race director at the finish. Nice volunteers–plenty of stuff on course. Do it!